Golfers generally carry a set of clubs on trolleys or buggies as they play a round of golf. On approaching every green, they have to ensure each trolley or buggy is manoeuvred into an optimum position adjoining the green. This allows the golfers a speedy exit towards the next tee area once their green-side play has been completed. By following this sequence, vital speed of play is maintained by the golfers without their trolleys or buggies causing delay during the green-side play by criss-crossing around the green to different ball/shot positions, before finally exiting the area. Consequently, golfers frequently have to manually carry more than one golf club away from their trolleys/buggies when near a green in order to complete their strokes and final putts. Generally, a golfer places his selection of unused golf clubs on the ground after having decided which one of the chosen clubs he must use to play the next stroke. The adjoining ground, which may be wet, sandy, muddy or deep rough grass, causes the grips on those clubs to get wet and dirty which may adversely affect and delay subsequent strokes. Still further, unused clubs are often left behind and lost because having had to be laid on the ground, they are not clearly visible to the golfer upon moving forward quickly onto the next stroke. This causes golfers further anxiety and delay in their efforts to play at a good speed, as expected and encouraged at all golf courses throughout the world. In the situation described above, with several clubs lying on the ground, apart from the risk of losing their cherished golf clubs, golfers of all ages can develop or aggravate back problems or knee aches in the process of frequently bending down to retrieve them.
It is known to provide some sort of support to allow the golfer to rest a selection of spare clubs in an elevated orientation when playing a shot with another of the selected clubs. One example of such a device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,578,719 which has a large weighted base and an elongate shaft with individual hook arrangements allowing individual golf clubs to rest thereagainst. U.S. Pat. No. 5,285,990 discloses a rest in which the elongate shaft is provides with a hook or cradle arrangement at an upper end against which a golf club may be rested. The arrangement seems to require the rest to be tilted from a vertical axis in order to allow safe location of the rested club. U.S. Pat. No. 5,417,334 discloses a golf club rack which may be engaged into the ground by means of a spike but which is generally intended for carrying clubs in firmly fixed individual positions rather than just supporting them. U.S. Pat. No. 5,636,754 also discloses a golf club stand with a multi-directional planar quarter loop support which allows clubs to be rested within the loop in a substantially vertical position. The loop is provided with a restricted opening allowing clubs to be removed but it may be difficult to remove clubs when more than one is rested at a time. DE19900252 also discloses a club carrier with a ground spike and a means for firmly securing clubs at two positions along their length. The securing mechanism is primarily intended to secure the clubs during carrying and removal is not easily achieved. US2004/0198527 discloses a telescopic rod retainer used to support a golf club and includes a tight clip into which the golf club is securely retained. Removal is unlikely to be easy or intended. US2010/0130301 also discloses a golf club stand having a flat plate base and a V shaped support at an upper end. The support has no end restraints. FR2177198 discloses a golf club support and ground repair device, having a generally large rectangular planar club rest and having specifically shaped cut-outs designed for individual golf clubs. The large planar club rest cannot be carried inside a golf bag as its cutouts will interfere and entangle with other clubs therein, making them difficult to remove from the bag. If carried outside the bag, it is liable to be dislodged and lost during play as it is only clipped at one fixing point, or stolen whilst at a golfing venue as it is visible outside the golf bag. As a repairer of ball marks on a green, the radiating ribs to underside of the bottom plate will cause further damage to surface of the green beyond the ball mark, thus causing undue anxiety and delay to fellow golfers. US2003/0102414 discloses a collapsible support with legs and a generally horizontal support member which could be used as a golf club rest but contains no end restraints at all, and not easily carried inside a golf bag.
Whilst the above described supports provide at least a partial solution to the problem of supporting golf clubs as required, it has been found that they can be difficult to use or do not lend themselves to easy transportation. The present invention aims to provide a simple solution to the problem of providing an easily transportable golf club rest that can be suitably carried inside a golf bag, and can support one or more golf clubs in a convenient manner that allows easy and speedy access thereto as and when desired.